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Well technically I think it depends on what state you are in. I think if you want to be Cool Corporation and you are registered in NY state that anotehr Cool Corportation could register in california. Check with local County Clerk about this.

Does anybody remember the url/website that allows me to check if a business name is taken?

thanx

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You have to be careful about using a name that is tradename or service mark. Each state only checks its own records to see if that name has already been used in that state, but that isn't the same as having a legal right to use it. For instance, you could probably register microsoft, inc in some states because they haven't registered as a corporation in that state, but even if you were granted the corporate name, you would be sued the minute Microsoft got wind of it.

If you are looking for a generic coporate name for legal purposes, then you have less of a concern about trademark infringement. If you want to use the name on a website, advertising, product or service, then you should to do a tradename search to make sure no one else is using the name. This isn't a registered trademark search, rather a more expanded search to see if anyone is using the name. You don't need a registered trademark to have rights to use the name. There are many companies that perform this and it usually runs from a couple hundred dollars and up. Before you did that, I would just google the name to see if you can find anyone else using it.

Generally speaking, if the name isn't in the USPTO database, you can't it in Google, and the domain is available, you're probably okay. If you do want to protect the name and also verify that it isn't any infringement, then you'll want to register the trademark. Do your research first though - if you are wrong and it is an infringement, you don't get your filing fee back!

Here is an article with more info on how to "do it yourself" - but if you're not comfortable with this sort of research and filling out long cumbersome forms, you might need to consult an attorney.